Val McDermid, A Darker Domain (2008)

Two of my three children snatched this Scottish stand-alone from my shelf before I got round to reading it myself, and afterwards they coaxed me to read it before anything else.

The story begins in 2007 when a young woman reports her father missing – during the miner´s strike in the 1980s! Detective Inspector Karen Pirie takes the case herself even though she should allocate it to someone subordinate, but she has not really got used to sitting at her desk, fiddling with the paperwork of her cold case unit. At the same time her ridiculous superior wants her to focus on a high-profile case about a tycoon´s daughter and grandson who were kidnapped around the same time as miner Mike Prentice left his unassuming home, because an ambitious journalist has stumbled upon new evidence. Karen Pirie is a stubborn and spirited protagonist, however, who knows how to throw her weight about, and the clashes between Karen and her boss are part of the comic relief of this excellent story.

Among the many well-drawn characters I enjoyed a reunion with River Wilde, the forensic anthropologist I came across last year in the not very grave yarn “The Grave Tattoo” (2006). Another strong point was the convincing description of the strike and the consequences it had for the local communities.

This cold-case story is of the same, fine quality as “A Place of Execution” which I reviewed earlier this month.

This book is a generous gift from Maxine who reviewed it last year.